Niraj Agrawal Program Leader

About Niraj Agrawal Program Leader

As a Program and Principal Engineering Manager with 22+ years of experience, I operate at the intersection of business, engineering, and delivery. I lead cross-functional teams and portfolios in regulated, high-expectation environments, with a focus on predictable execution, clear governance, and measurable outcomes.Over the years, I’ve worked across IT and insurance portfolios where expectations are high, dependencies are messy and failure is not an option. My strength lies in bringing structure to that chaos, building operating models that improve flow from requirements to release, and setting up risk and dependency management that leaders can act on early, not after the fact.More recently, I’ve been driving the practical adoption of AI and GenAI-enabled solutions within delivery and program operations, particularly in areas such as workflow automation, reporting, and decision support. My focus is on using AI responsibly to reduce manual effort, improve cycle time, and provide clearer visibility into risks, dependencies, and execution health, always tied back to measurable business outcomes.What I bring to the table:• Enterprise program and portfolio leadership, from planning and budgeting through delivery and adoption• Agile transformation with a strong execution backbone, metrics with meaning, and stakeholder alignment• Risk management and governance frameworks that surface issues early and improve decision-making• Scalable team structures and operating rhythms that reduce dependency friction and improve throughput• Strong stakeholder and customer alignment, especially in high-pressure and shifting environmentsSelected outcomes:• Delivered a portfolio of IT and insurance initiatives with consistent on-time delivery within a structured governance model• Reduced project turnaround time by ~40% through a combination of Agile delivery practices, targeted automation, and AI-enabled workflow optimizations, eliminating manual handoffs and improving cycle time and release throughput.• Reduced risk exposure by ~40% by implementing structured risk frameworks with clear ownership, triggers, and mitigation planningI\'m typically brought in when programs need to be stabilised, scaled or realigned to deliver with confidence. I focus on execution discipline, predictable outcomes, and building systems that continue to perform beyond individual teams.

Experience

1. Principal Engineering Manager

   Persistent Systems

   Oct 2025 — Present · IN

Education

• Nowrosjee Wadia College

  Bachelor’s Degree, Computer Science

  1993 — 1996

• Savitribai Phule Pune University

  Master’s Degree, Computer Science

  1996 — 1999

Skills

• Software Development
• Agile Methodologies
• Software Design
• Scrum
• Management
• Web Services
• Kanban
• Databases
• Visual Studio
• Soa
• Requirements Analysis
• Extreme Programming
• Requirements Gathering
• Java
• Sql
• Software Project Management
• Crm
• Asp.net
• Business Intelligence
• Lean Software Development
• Wcf
• Mysql
• Team Management
• Sdlc
• Iis
• Xml
• Vb.net
• C#
• .net
• Microsoft Sql Server